A Club in Old Soho
by Narnialover
Summary: Songfic. The tale of Ray's first "real" night in London with his club happy sister and her friend. But where does the mysterious Lola fit in with all of this?


Disclaimer: I do not own Lola by the Kinks.

"Why are we doing this again?" I asked tiredly as we walked down a cracked and dirty sidewalk, passing old bakeries and houses as we got into the more sketchy parts, the street lamps sputtering on to provide light.

Mum and Dad had decided it was a good time for me to visit my older sister at her work. Personally, I think it was just their way of getting me out of the house and to stop my younger brother and me from killing each other.

My sister, Sarah, sighed and looked to her friend, Meghan, for support. "Ray, this is the first time you've been to London so why not enjoy it?"

"Enjoy it by going to a club?" I asked doubtfully.

Meghan threw her arm around my shoulder and grinned up at me. "Exactly. Better than being a loaf and eating all of your sister's hard earned food."

I merely groaned as we made our way into a club where there was already a good amount of people dancing and partying.

Sarah turned to me, giving me her best impression of Mum. "Now Ray, I don't want to you wandering off or doing something stupid. Try to stay with either Meghan–ok fine, just don't give me that look, and stay with me, the whole time, alright?"

Apparently her definition of "staying with her" meant that I stay at the bar and keep the tab running. Meghan said that I was and I quote "cramping their style" as they tried to pick up guys. This made me laugh since Meghan already had several boyfriends who doted on her constantly.

The barkeep took pity on me and gave me a drink on the house, not sure what it was, but it tasted really good. This was how I was planning on spending my "first _real_ night in London": watching those two get piss drunk then take their staggering arses back to Sarah's apartment where they would collapse and have major hangovers in the morning.

_I met her in a club down in old soho  
Where you drink champagne and it tastes just like Coca-cola  
C-o-l-a cola  
She walked up to me and she asked me to dance  
I asked her her name and in a dark brown voice she said __Lola  
L-o-l-a Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola_

I had finished my second drink when this woman walked up to me. She looked to be around my old age of twenty-five with dark, tanned skin and curly brown hair that fell down to the tops of her shoulders. She was wearing a short flowered mini dress that showed off her modest chest and slim hips with knee high brown leather and tasseled boots.

She sat on the stool next to me and ordered a margarita with no salt. I watched her come, but then turned my attention back to Meghan and Sarah's dancing with their new partners.

"Hello, never seen you here before." Said a rich and slightly deep voice.

Startled, I turned to see the woman from before.

"My first time in London, sister dragged me here." I said, jabbing my thumb in Sarah's direction.

I figured the conversation was done since she went back to her drink so I turned back to my own.

"Lola." I nearly choked on my drink.

"E-Excuse me?"

"My name is Lola, Lola Reyes. What's yours?"

"Oh," I tried to stifle another cough, "I'm Raymond Davis, but everyone calls me Ray."

When I shook her hand I was surprised at how tough it seemed and how strong her handshake was, it almost reminded me of my Dad's.

"Would you care to dance?" she asked, looking at me with her deep brown eyes.

"I don't dance." I said, slightly embarrassed.

"Don't worry, I can teach you." Lola stood up and grabbed my hand, almost pulling me off of the stool.

"Geez you're strong. Hold on, let me finish my drink." I may have seemed only nervous on the outside, but on the inside I was panicking. I'd never danced before my life. I mean sure I've danced with family at weddings and such, but a wedding with family is not a club with a really pretty girl.

Lola dragged me onto the dance floor, thankfully on the opposite side of Sarah and Meghan. But as she walked I had calmed down enough to notice that she didn't walk quite like a girl. After growing up with six older sisters, I should know how a girl walks. Lola had a strong and contained stride with little hip movement, unlike Sarah and Meghan who seemed to unconsciously sway their hips as they walked with a smooth fluid step.

The song had turned into a pseudo-slow song and Lola had wrapped her arm around my waist and clasped her other hand with mine. I was content to leave some space between us and have my arm loosely around her waist considering I've had little to no experience with women, let alone someone as outgoing as Lola, but that didn't seem to stop her.

_Well __I'm not the world's most physical guy  
But when she squeezed me tight she nearly broke my spine  
Oh my Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola  
Well I'm not dumb but I can't understand  
Why she walked like a woman and talked like a man  
Oh my Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola_

After a few songs Lola took pity on me and went back to the bar. I thankfully collapsed onto my previous stool while Lola ordered another round of drinks for us.

As I took time to breathe and gulp down the coke/beer concoction, I analyzed Lola.

She was tall for a girl. She came to a little above my shoulder and I was 6'3" and her boots didn't have a heel. Her face, albeit very pretty, was slightly masculine, but by this point I didn't really care. All I knew was that Lola was fun, I liked fun, and that I _really_ like Lola.

"Now dancing's not _that_ bad is it?" she asked teasingly.

I grinned back. "I _guess_ not, but I'm still not going to make it a hobby."

"Oh we'll see about that." She once again dragged me back to the dance floor where I was little bit more enthusiastic. We danced and talked until the bartender came up to ask Lola a favor.

Apparently she needed Lola to clean out one of rooms above the club since she had family coming, but couldn't do it since she needed to stay and watch the bar.

Lola agreed, and almost like a lost puppy, I went with her.

We fixed up the room rather quickly, although I wasn't as skilled in making the bed as Lola was. You could say it was one of the benefits of having older sisters to do the chores for you.

Lola collapsed on to the bed, the skirt of her dress fanned around her, the electric candles in the room made her tan skin slightly glow. If I'm not careful, I thought to myself, I may just fall in love with her.

"Listen." She said quietly and I did. We could hear the music from the club downstairs through the floor.

She stood up and we began to dance, but it wasn't as wild as our previous ones. No, this one was slower and calmer.

_Well we drank champagne and danced all night  
Under electric candlelight  
She picked me up and sat me on her knee  
And said dear boy won__'t you come home with me  
Well I'm not the world's most passionate guy  
But when I looked in her eyes well I almost fell for my Lola  
Lo-lo-lo-lo Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola  
Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola_

I had suddenly started to feel nervous around Lola and had an extreme urge to kiss her. I had been avoiding her eyes since I was sure she wouldn't want an inexperienced guy like me to kiss her. Out of the corner of my vision, I saw her frown and felt her hand push my face to look at hers.

"What's wrong?" she asked softly.

"Nothing." I blushed slightly and looked away from her again.

She reached her hand up to brush my long brown bangs away from my eyes making me look at her.

I made the mistake of looking into her eyes and everything I had been thinking and worrying about spilled out of my mouth before I could stop it.

"It's just you look so pretty right now and I really want to kiss you, but you wouldn't want someone as inexperienced as me to kiss someone as beautiful and outgoing as you. Well, I guess you could say that I'm experienced if you count that kiss that I shared with Mary behind the school, but then again her braces made it slightly awkward. And I'm a weakling, no muscle whatsoever and I've never even really danced before tonight cause weddings spent dancing with your Aunt isn't really dancing. But I really like you, and I mean _really _like you. And–"

I hadn't noticed the happy twinkle in her eye and soft smile on Lola's face before she cut me off with a kiss. At first I was too shocked to properly respond, but then all coherent thought left me, allowing for a response.

We kissed for several long moments, each kiss more passionate than the first, before I began to feel something pressing into my thigh. I tried to ignore it before comprehension set in of what it was.

_I pushed her away  
I walked to the door  
I fell to the floor  
I got down on my knees  
Then I looked at her and she at me_

Lola's a guy. She's a he. _Transvestite._

These thoughts circled round and round in my head. I'm attracted to girls not guys, so I shouldn't like Lola. But then why do I still want to hold her, kiss her, monopolize her–I mean him?

_Because you love her_.

Thought flashed across my mind, I tried to ignore it but it wouldn't go away. Lola looked scared, ashamed, and apprehensive as she watched my internal struggle and waited for me to do something else from her spot near the foot of the bed. Her hair was mussed along with her dress, she stood with her arms wrapped around herself but looking like she wanted to reach out to me at the same time.

I knew that I shouldn't like guys, but Lola was trying to be a girl so doesn't that make it ok?

My thoughts were so confused until my heart won in the battle against my brain.

I loved her and that's all that matters. I don't care what others think.

I got up, walked over to Lola, and pulled her close against me.

"I love you." I whispered in her hair, waiting for her answer.

"You don't care?" she seemed shocked.

I smiled down at her.

"Nope."

"Then I love you too."

_Well __that's the way that I want it to stay  
And I always want it to be that way for my Lola  
Lo-lo-lo-lo Lola  
Girls will be boys and boys will be girls  
Its a mixed up muddled up shook up world except for Lola  
Lo-lo-lo-lo Lola_

I couldn't believe that I wasn't taking Sarah and Meghan home by myself. Lola was right there with me, helping support Meghan's smaller frame.

"Whosit yur frien'?" Sarah slurred as she tried to get a clearer look at Lola.

"Lola." I replied calmly. "And if you dare hurl on me I won't buy you the hangover medicine in the morning."

"Oh. She's purty." Sarah continued before giggling to herself.

"Yeah she–I don't feel so good." Said Meghan before Lola's quick thinking had her hurling on the street instead of her dress.

By the time we made it back to Sarah's, both of them had hurled at least twice and were barely able to make it up the last couple stairs without us carrying them.

I closed the door to Sarah's room where we had deposited them and made my way back to the main area where Lola was waiting.

I still couldn't believe that I had been a normal kid who had never been to a club, let alone danced with a girl, only a week ago. It seemed so far away and it made me wonder why Lola was so interested in me.

_Well I left home just a week before  
And I__' d never ever kissed a woman before  
But Lola smiled and took me by the hand  
And said dear boy I'm gonna make you a man_

As I walked Lola back to her apartment which was surprisingly only four blocks away from my sister's, I decided to voice my thoughts and insecurities.

"Why me?"

Lola stopped just outside the light of the street lamp in front of her building and turned to face me. The light behind her almost made her seem surreal.

"Because you looked so sweet and kind. I could tell that you still had some integrity which cannot be said about some guys today. And part of me hoped that you wouldn't be as judgmental as other guys."

She looked down at her hands that were fisting her dress and picking at unseen hems.

"I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't think you would like me enough and my emotions got ahead of me. I'm having a surgery soon so I'll be a full woman. Is that ok?" She said all of this in an extremely small voice, it getting smaller the more she talked.

I stood stunned by her words. These are not topics that country boys have to deal with on a regular basis.

"I don't mind. Before I might've but after getting to know you better I don't care what gender you are." I said in a small voice also, extremely embarrassed as I looked down at my shoes. I'm pretty sure my face could have given a tomato a run for its money.

The next thing I knew, Lola had me in a bone crushing hug and had given me a peck on the cheek.

"Thank you, I love you."

She pulled away and laughed slightly at my fire-engine red face.

Lola turned and walked up the steps to her apartment building. Just as she was about to close the door I regained enough coherent thought to shout,

"Wanna get coffee and donuts with me in the morning?"

She turned, startled, and looked wildly around before resting on the clock on the outside of her building.

"But it's already morning." She shouted back.

"Then lunch?" I was desperate to spend more time with Lola and to get to know her better.

"Sure! Eleven sound good?"

"Yeah! See ya then!" I was on cloud nine.

I started to do a little jig as I made my way back to Sarah's. Not even Sarah's and Meghan's horrible moods and suspicious glares could bring me down.

_Well __I'm not the world's most masculine man  
But I know what I am and I'm glad I'm a man  
And so is Lola  
Lo-lo-lo-lo Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola  
Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola lo-lo-lo-lo Lola_

XxxxxxxxxxxxX

**A/N:** I have been dying to write this for SO long you have no idea. To reiterate the disclaimer, the song is Lola by the Kinks. The main character is loosely based off of Ray Davies, the lead singer of The Kinks. He had six older sisters and one younger brother Dave, but that's about it for being like him.

I hope you all liked it!

Happy Easter!


End file.
